Patience,troublemaker
by Flowing lantern
Summary: Defan one-shot/ When their abusive father accuses his sons of stealing money, twelve-year-old Damon has no choice but to protect his brother, take the blame for something he didn't do and face the consequences. When Stefan sees his big brother hurt, he tries to fix things as best as he can and help him even if he's still a child himself.


_**A/N: Hey, guys. This is a one-shot I wrote a while ago and it focuses on the episode of season seven where we saw a flashback with the brothers as kids and their father punishing Damon because he accused him of stealing money. This one-shot picks up from that moment and follows the events after that. It's settled in 1851, Damon is twelve and Stefan should be about six (give or take). I usually describe Damon taking care of Stefan but here it's a bit of the opposite even if Stefan is younger. Hope you like it and I will really appreciate your opinions.**_

* * *

 **Stefan's POV**

I'm watching as father is getting angrier by the minute even after I passed him the matches and he lit his cigar. I thought that would make him happy, I thought that was what he wanted, until he started asking about some missing money.

I was confused, I gave Damon a worried look, I couldn't quite figure out what was going on. I knew that it wasn't us who took the money, it couldn't have been, unless Damon wanted to buy me that beautiful wooden horse we saw downtown, that made me stare at the shop window for twenty minutes, but then again did it cost so much?

Father wouldn't be angry if the money were not much, right? Or maybe he would be? I didn't know. Lately he got angry all the time and when Damon wasn't here to stop him, he took it out on me.

He told me I deserved it, so I believed him.

I think Damon disagreed, but he would rarely talk about it when either I or he was punished for doing something bad-we would just sit in silence and lay in our beds, hoping the pain will pass.

I was growing nervous and I could feel my heart jump up in my throat-something here was going to go terribly wrong. Mother has just gone out of the room and I was hoping she would be back before father decides to do something bad.

I knew that he was older and we had to obey him, but deep down, when he was punishing us, it just didn't feel right and usually after it I would cry all night long, wishing for Damon to just hug me, but he would usually be sent to the barn and me-they locked me in the room, leaving me banging my fists in the door begging them to let me go. It was pointless, nobody would hear me.

Still, Damon was the one who suffered most. I couldn't understand why father was always so angry with him. Yes, he tends to be disobeying sometimes, but he always made me laugh. He would be angry with me only when I came to his room and tried to wake him up too early in the morning. Sometimes he would throw his shoe at me. But I didn't mind, that only made me laugh more.

Lost in my thoughts, I forgot all about their conversation, I was so scared, that I've folded my hands under the table and I could see my white knuckles when I looked down, afraid to face my father's rage

"Then what would a man do?" he asked Damon

"He would tell the truth" Damon responded, using the words our father has countless of times reminded us.

A man would tell the truth, a man would never lie, a man would have a proper behavior in the society and so on and so on. All things that father accused Damon of not doing when I knew he was being unfair. My brother was trying really hard and I myself too made mistakes very often.

"And the truth is?" father asks, his voice hoarse and silent, but sounding so threatening.

Damon looked at me and I tried to tell him with my eyes that I had no idea what money father is talking about. I was scared, I just wanted it to end, but I was paralyzed with fear, still feeling the old bruises on my butt from a week ago.

Damon doesn't waste another second before he responds

"I took it" he admits to father, but I know it's not the truth, I could see it in his eyes. I always knew when my brother was lying.

He was doing this to protect me, I felt it in my heart and I wished nothing but to jump in this minute and say that I did it, even if I haven't. Damon has taken to many beating for me throughout the years, in the past few months even more. He had this need inside him to protect me, because he thought I was little and couldn't do anything.

But I wasn't little.

"Didn't raise you to be a thief" father began when I was about to raise my voice, but I decided to wait, because father got even angrier when someone interrupted him "But I also didn't raise you to be a liar and you've told the truth here today" I slowly started relaxing, maybe father will be in a good mood and forgive Damon easily. For the thing he didn't do. Maybe he'll be benevolent because it's Thanksgiving. "Have you learned your lesson?" he asked my big brother and I hoped that Damon won't be stupid enough to say anything different from yes. Sometimes he liked making things worse for himself.

He nodded and I slightly sighed. Thanks God, dad would forgive him easily.

And then before I knew it, he stretches out and grabs Damon's hand, pulling it to him and exposing his hand. I jumped scared in my chair. This can't be happening. I squeeze my eyes shut.

"This is to make sure you remember it" father says and I hear Damon's piercing screams fill the room as father burns his cigar in my brother's flesh.

I cover my ears in fear and I wish to hide under the table, but I'm so paralyzed, I can't even move. I wonder where mother is, she could come here and stop this, how isn't she hearing Damon's screams, why isn't she rushing to us?

When I opened my eyes again, father has left Damon off and he was already running away from the dinning room, holding his hand close to his chest. I'm not sure how many times father did what he did, but it was more than once for sure.

I looked around-the servants were gone and mother was nowhere to be seen-father and I were alone and I could feel the tears in my eyes.

I was a coward, I had to stood up for him. Why didn't I say anything? Why didn't I lie instead of him?

I stand up and decide it's time I go to him, help him, maybe call our maid so she can take care of his hand, but the minute I get up and try to rush out, father stomps his fist on the table and raises his voice

"Where do you think you're going, boy?" he asks and I freeze. He knows well where I want to go. I want to be with Damon. This all happened because of me. "Sit back down and finish your dinner!" he orders

"Can I be excused, father?" I ask with my weak voice, hoping not to let my tears spill right in front of him

"No, sit back down, boy!" he raises his voice again, but I stand still, refusing to move back to my seat. Mother is still nowhere to be found, but I have no intention of eating while Damon is suffering upstairs. I shake my head

"No" I say with my shaky voice and I start rushing to the door, but as I pass by him, he stretches out his long hand and pushes me to him

"Are you going to disobey me like your brother? Is this the kind of example he is setting up for you?" he asks, as he grabs my collar and raises me up.

I feel like I'm suffocating and then he pushes me back and presses my stomach to his leg as he pulls down my trousers. The air is cold against my naked bottom and I squeeze my eyes as he starts hitting me

"You" he slaps "will" again "learn" and again. I can't hold it, I start yelling "to obey me!" he says and I feel his drunk breath near my face.

He is harsh and I feel the pain spread down my legs and up to my back-it hurt like hell, but Damon's hand surely hurt more. I don't count the slaps, I can't think clearly, but when he finally lets me go, he kicks me one last time as I pick up my trousers and orders me to go to our room and think about my behavior.

Of course, I rush upstairs, even if my butt hurts so much. I had to get to Damon and when I finally push the door open I find him lying in bed, hiding under the covers

"Damy!" I whisper, tears streaming down my face "Damy?" I ask, worried that something's wrong. I rush by his bed and pull down the blanket, but he's holding his blanket tight and doesn't want to let go "Damon, please, let me see! Damy! Damy, come on!" I beg him and I cry out, letting all my tears go. I don't know if he heard what happened downstairs with me. My cries were pretty loud, I hoped he hasn't, because I didn't want to worry him

"Please, please, Damy, let me see!" I beg him and I hear a silent whimper form under the heavy blanket. He finally lets go and I push it down only to see him squeezing his eyes, trying not to let his tears slip. He was holding his hand and there was blood soaking through his fingers.

"Stefan, go away!" he grunts through teeth, but I shake my head. I grab his hand and remove it gently.

He lets me, but he is hurt and when I see the round wounds from father's cigar, I know they'll leave the scar, but the blood there is just awful and it smelled like hell. It's very late in the evening and all the maids must be back to their barracks near the fields so there was no one to call. Mother disappeared somewhere and father was probably still down drinking in the dinning room. There was no one to help him, but me.

"Wait here, Damy" I ordered silently. I was afraid to even speak up, worried that father might decide to come back up and finish what he started.

I hoped that he was too drunk by now to even care. Or remember. Damon said that when you get too drunk you don't remember anything. I'm sure in the morning he will act like everything's alright. But I will remember. I will always remember what he did to my brother.

I slowly get to the kitchen-I can't hear a sound coming from the other rooms, but thankfully the light is still on. I had to grab a chair and push it to the wall so I can climb and get a hold of the clean bandages on the shelves and the ointment our maid used when we burned ourselves.

Damon has taught me how to clean my wounds last year when I fell off the fence while watching the horses and bruised my knee. My hands were trembling and I stood on my toes, but I managed to get what I needed, hoping that nobody heard me. I left the chair where it was, not caring if anyone finds it or not. I only had the picture of Damon's blood and the awful smell of burned.

I made my way back to our room and stopped two times to grab my bottom which hurt way too much that I was willing to admit. When I got back Damon was still groaning in his bed. It was obvious that it hurt him even more.

"I'm here" I announced as if he couldn't see me and tried smiling.

 **Damon's POV**

I was dying from the burning pain in my hand. Father has been cruel before, bruising my ass and my back with his hand or with the strap, but this hurt way too much than I expected.

I thought that the pain will subside but it hasn't and my little brother's worried face only made me feel worse. He was so ruined and he didn't deserve it. I was trying to help him, but I ended up doing nothing for him when I heard his cries coming from downstairs-father must've showed him the same love he did me tonight as I caught him grabbing his bottom every now and again.

His actions made my heart melt though-he was so damn compassionate. I didn't have this in me-he was so worried about me. I watched as he rushed downstairs and came back to our room what felt like hours later because the pain was just too strong for me to handle. I was afraid I'll lose consciousness and I didn't want to scare him even more.

I saw him bringing up the bottle full of ointment and some clean bandages and with his shaky, very inexperienced and clumsy little hands he put them on the nightstand next to the bed.

I couldn't do anything but groan and squeeze my eyes here and there but through all the pain I saw him unscrewing the small jar's cap. He carefully dips his small fingers in it and then slowly carefully, even fearfully he approaches my hand and starts rubbing it on my wounds. I squeeze my eyes shut and try not to scream, his fingers were so light, gently massaging the painful wounds, but despite him being so careful I still hurt a lot.

"I'm sorry, Damy. Just hold on for a bit" he asks and takes care of all the burnt marks himself. I looked at him and realized how little he is, yet there was something so serious in his gaze, it broke my heart just watching him. He was shifting the weight of his small body either on his left or right leg, because his bottom probably hurt like hell and I made a mental note to check that later and see if he's fine "Does it hurt?" he asks

"A little" I lie as he leaves the jar away and picks the bandages. His hands are clumsy and not strong enough, but he tries his best to wrap my hand up and I help him with my healthy hand. We make a good team and he's honestly quite gifted at this. Whenever someone asked him what he wants to work when he grows up, he always said he wants to be a doctor. I hoped that happens one day. "Thank you, Stefan"

"I'm sorry" he says instead as he finally is ready with everything and starts folding his hands nervously

"What for?" I ask confused and he stares at his feet

"I know you lied only to protect me" he says silently, afraid to speak up. I hated that father made him doubt each word and wonder if he should say something or not.

"Come here, Stef" I urged him but he didn't jump in bed right away "Come on, brother" I said again and he shook his head

"I don't wanna hurt you, Damy" he admits and his hands go back to his butt again, probably because it hurts him too much.

"You won't. Take the jacket off and come here" I tell him and he slowly starts undressing himself, carefully folding his little jacket, his shirt and his trousers.

He is left only with his bottom white shirt which is too big for him and his underwear and I move away from the pillow, leaving some space for him. He is careful when he sits on the bed and he tries to silent his sobs, but father must've bruised him pretty bad, because he lets a whimper out and I gently push him down

"Lie on your stomach" I order and he obeys, burying his head in the pillow "Let me see now" I say as I gently lift his shirt and see the moment I see his bruised blue butt it goes dark before my eyes.

I am so angry that father could do this to him, especially after he took his anger out on me tonight first.

"I'm going to kill him" I say through teeth and Stefan shivers underneath me. I gently pull his bottoms up and cover his back with the shirt, then toss the blanket over both of us.

Stefan didn't deserve this-he was such a sweet kid, yes sometimes he was annoyingly following me everywhere and I got tired of it, but I loved him from the bottom of my heart and I was so afraid father would snap one day and hurt him too bad. That's why I always stepped in and took the blame even if there was something he did wrong. I couldn't watch father spank him or kick him-he was so big and cruel and Stefan was just so small.

I felt him shivering and I realized it was because he was crying, trying to hide his tears from me as he drowned his sorrow in the pillow.

"Hey, hey, Stef" I mumbled and put my hand on his shoulder. The movement hurt, but it was worth it. It was for him" It's okay, buddy" I tried soothing him "He can't hurt us anymore, we're safe here" I wanted to explain that I won't ever let father touch him again, but I couldn't promise him that it will all be fine, considering the event from tonight.

"But he hurt you" he says through tears and keeps shaking even after I've embraced him and tried pulling him to my chest "And it was my fault"

"Come here, little brother" I say again and press his back to my chest.

My bandaged hand ends up on his stomach and he stares at it afraid that he's gonna hurt me. I hate the fact that he's still crying. It was probably all coming to him now-the fear overwhelmed him and suddenly suffocated him. Until now he was trying to hold on. For me.

"Hey, turn around" I beg him, but he tried pushing away, he didn't want me to see his tears "Come on!" I say a bit harsh and mentally scold myself for it. He ends up on his back now and squeezes his eyes when he feels the pain from the bruises

"What father is doing to us" I say slowly so he can understand every word "is not and never will be your fault, do you understand? You haven't done anything wrong."

"Neither have you" he says simply "But he still did all this" he points at my hand and places his little palm over my bandages gently stroking it "I want to take all the pain away, but I don't know how" he admits and furrows his little eyebrows. I put my healthy hand on his tummy and tickle him gently. He smiles for a brief moment, but I realize that I'm causing him pain by doing this.

"Come on now, sleep" I order and he nods slowly as he turns back and lies on his belly with a small childish grunt-he was in pain and so was I.

I threw my hand over his small body and pull the blanket up our chins-the room was extra cold this evening, I guess father, in his drunken state, forgot to ask the maids to light the fireplace and I could feel Stefan slightly trembling, so I pulled him closer to me, just to keep him warm, even if I myself was freezing.

I didn't have any strength left, but I also couldn't fall asleep-the pain in my hand was keeping me awake and just when I thought Stefan has fallen asleep, he proved me wrong. He turned back to me and I closed my eyes, hoping that when he see I am asleep he will follow my lead, but I was surprised when he moved up and kissed my forehead

"Stefan, what are you doing?" I whispered confused "I told you to fall asleep!" I was getting frustrated, because I was in pain and exhausted

"But, Damy, I remembered how momma takes my pain away so I wanted to try" he says apologizing and my heart start melting all over again "I'm sorry" he says sadly and turns around again, burying his head under the blanket

"It's okay, Stef, it helped" I lie to him and he peeks from under the blanket, gripping it tight with his small hands and pulling it up to his nose

"Really?" his eyes go wide and I nod "Will you take my pain away too?" he asks and I sigh annoyed. I wasn't going to kiss him! I am a big guy now, he is just a child-mom could kiss him all she wants

"Nope" I cut him off and his eyes immediately go sad" Now sleep!" he turns around slowly, again on his belly and grunts a few times from the pain in his butt, probably on purpose, because he wanted me to kiss him.

He was a very affectionate little kid, he loved when people hugged him, ruffled his hair, kissed him on the forehead and he loved hugging back. He liked giving his heart away and I knew one day he would suffer from it-he was so naïve and too good for his own good. I knew I had to protect him at all costs when we grow up-people will take advantage of his good heart.

He starts falling asleep, but I can't, no matter how much time passes, the burnt marks on my hand are killing me even after Stefan applied the ointment and tried to help me. He has just dozed off and started breathing evenly when apparently he began dreaming of something. He started uncomfortably moving under the blanket and groaning

"No, please, no!" he begged barely audibly and moved his head left and right. I wondered what must be going on in his pretty blond head, but I didn't want to wake him up after he has just fallen asleep. Obviously he was having a nightmare, though, so I had no idea what to do "Please, leave him alone!" he asked of someone and I swallowed hard, thinking how this might be a dream mirroring the awful dinner we had and my heart clenched both from fear and anger.

He kept trashing the bed with his little body and he even raised his small hands in the air as if to protect himself, which is when I decided that I couldn't watch him like this anymore so I grabbed his hand despite the pain I felt, pulled him closer to me again and leaned down to kiss his forehead.

Surprisingly, when he felt that he wasn't alone, he calmed down and relaxed back into his pillow. He kept mumbling the same things for a minute or two, but then he stopped talking and obviously went back to sleeping peacefully. He even smiled in his sleep and I smiled back.

"You little troublemaker" I whispered as I lied back down as well and tried falling asleep, desperate for some rest.

* * *

The next thing I knew, someone was gently shaking my shoulder. I opened my eyes slowly and saw our maid Constance was giving me a worried look.

"Master Damon" she whispered and when I looked down I realized why-Stefan was still sleeping soundly, this time, turned to me, his blond hair buried in my chest and his hand gripping my shirt. "Are you okay?" she asks as she stares down at my bandage. I realize that there was blood on it and when I moved it up I couldn't help but groan loudly from the pain I still felt. Stefan shifted next to me and turned around rubbing his eyes with his little fists and yawning tiredly

"Goddammit!" I cursed as I let him roll off me and pulled my hand to my chest

"No cursing!" both Stefan and Constance scolded me, which almost made me smile.

Almost, I was still drowning in pain. I started trying to get up and I let my legs hang from the bed when I felt the little monkey kneel behind me and peek behind my shoulder with a worried face

"Damy, are you okay?" he asks "Does it still hurt?"

"I'm fine" I groan a little frustrated, but the minute I start trying to get up, Constance blocks my way with a chair that she uses to sit on, then gently grabs my hand and stretches it out

"Let me see, master Damon" she asks with a look if I'm giving her permission to unroll the bandages and I nod squeezing my eyes as I feel her moving away the soaked fabric.

She was older than our mother, but she was still my favorite maid. She raised both me and Stefan and she took great care of us, especially when mother and father were too busy to deal with us and went to evening gatherings or trips to other towns together. I loved Constance as much as my mother and I would trust her with my life.

"That looks quite bad" she says observingly. She was very smart too. I'm sure that she must've heard by now, what has happened last night, or at least made a pretty good guess, but she wasn't going to comment on it. "Doctor Gilbert should see it, master, it can get worse" she says simply but I shake my head

"No, no doctors."

"I can go get him!" Stefan volunteers right away and looks at Constance for approval

"Are you two crazy?" I interrupt them "No doctors! Dad will kill us if we get anyone here."

"But your father and mother left for Richmond this morning, master" Constance explains and I feel a heavy weight lift from my shoulders "They won't be back until tomorrow evening."

"Still, it's dangerous. How will I explain this, huh, Constance?" I asked, raising my voice unwillingly. I was angry and in pain and I hated myself for doing this, because I felt Stefan shivering behind me as he still embraced my with his small hands.

"We'll come up with something" she argues with me, without letting go of my hand "We can't leave you like this, master Damon. Your mother asked me to take care of you while she's gone and that's what I'll do." she says as she pushes me back to the pillows and covers me up with the blanket "Master Stefan, all the men are on the fields so there's no one to go to Gilbert's house but you. Can you do that?" she asks and he nods enthusiastically

"No, Constance, he is hurt too!" I argue, but Stefan shakes his head

"I'm fine." he promises as he jumps off bed and starts putting his clothes on way too enthusiastically for a kid his age.

I notice the way he furrows his little eyebrows when he tries to get his pants on. He was quite good at it, even if he was only eight. Constance has taught him good and they were making him do many things by himself, saying that he's a big boy now. I felt bad for him sometimes. Especially when he couldn't tie his shoes. He was really bad at it.

"It doesn't hurt me anymore" he lies, because I saw how blue his butt is when he was struggling to put his clothes on. He was quite the funny little thing to watch and if I wasn't in pain, I would've laughed.

"Put your coat on, master Stefan" Constance orders and I watch as my little brother struggles with the sleeves of the big coat, but finally manages to do it.

Then he runs by Constance's side for last instruction and she tell shim which road to take and to be careful, not to run and take his time. He nods and promises he'll be fast. Then he turns to me and grabs my hand in his little ones

"I'll be back soon, Damy, promise" he says with a smile and I nod, avoiding his look, because that was the last thing I needed.

I didn't want to deal with doctors and I certainly didn't want our maid to send Stefan of all people to do this when was perfectly fine. Constance didn't believe me though, she pulled the blanket back up and raised me a bit on my pillows, then wrapped my hand in an improvised bandage just so I wouldn't get it too dirty and brought me tea. I was really tired and I wanted to sleep again, even if I've just woken up, but the burning anger towards my father and the thought of little Stefan running to Gilbert's mansion on his own in the chilly morning kept me awake.

 **Stefan's POV**

I'm running as fast as I can with all the strength there is in me. But I'm not at all fast. By the time I reach the fence at the end of our lands, I am tired and I take my coat off even if I'm not supposed to.

It's not that cold outside or at least I don't feel cold. I have to put it back on soon, because I'll get sick, but I wanted to run faster and the coat was only preventing me from doing so. I wish I've taken Damon's horse Mushroom, but it's too big for me and I can't climb on it without someone's help and now everyone is on the fields or downtown.

I take a few deep breaths and start climbing the fence. First, I throw my coat on the other side. It was hard for me to do all that, but I managed and I think I was relatively fast. Then I grabbed the coat and began running again.

The Gilbert mansion was close to ours. I just had to pass by the Fells first and they had a pretty big garden full of apple trees. I started running in that direction, for I knew that that's the shortest way out to the Gilberts and I felt the tree's branches hitting my face. I pulled up my hand in order to protect my face, but that made it hard for me to see what's coming and so without even realizing what's going on, I tripped over a root and felt that I was falling.

My face was buried in the mud and I felt like I won't be able to stand up-I hurt, I felt the pain, but I knew that this was for Damon, that he needed help and I had to do whatever I can to get where they send me.

I couldn't disappoint them.

I felt the tears roll down my cheeks and I hated myself for crying, so I angrily brushed them away with my sleeve and slowly raised my head up-it was cold, I could see my breathe and the sun was trying to make its way through the three's branches. When I tried moving, I almost cried out-my butt still hurt, but I sat down and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself.

I looked down at my knees-I've torn apart my trousers and there was blood. It stung a lot and when I touched it, I almost cried out, so I decided not to do so again. I slowly stood up and tried brushing away the dirt from my clothes. I put my coat back on-part of it was wet and muddy, because I've dropped it in a puddle, but didn't pay much attention to it-I had to get to the Gilberts.

So I started running again, thinking about Damon and how much he hurt this morning. All I could remember was the bloody burnt wounds on his hand which were staining the bandages-I hated that father hurt him like this. It was supposed to be me. I had to speak up first.

Lost in my thoughts, I kept running with all the strength I had and soon I arrived at the Gilbert's door. I started frantically knocking even though that wasn't very gentlemen like and if mother was here she would probably scold me.

"Yes?" a maid opened the door and looked somewhere above me before I waved my hand and brought her attention to me

"Hello, madam, can you please get doctor Gilbert for me?" I asked as I tried to catch my breathe. She recognized me. I often came the their house to play with their son Henry and his father was always so kind to me and Damon. I really liked him and I was very interested in everything he did, because he was a doctor and I wanted to be one too.

"Stefan, what is going on?" she asks even confused and I guess that I must look quite ridiculous with my clothes and face all dirty "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I am fine, but it's my brother, he needs help." I explain as best as I can and she nods, letting me in, promising me she'll get the doctor right away. Soon Mr. Gilbert comes out of his study and he gives me a worried look as the maid follows behind him

"Hey, Stefan what's wrong?" he asks as he leans down to my level. I try very hard not to show him how I feel, but my voice shakes as I explain that Damon's hurt and he puts his hand on my little shoulders, trying to calm me down.

"Can you please come, sir?" I ask with a weak and tired voice, hoping that he just comes with me

"Of course I'll come" he promises with a small smile and I try to give him a grateful nod. Father forbid me from crying, especially in front of people who weren't family. "You hurt yourself" he continues "Did you run here?"

"Yes, sir" I say, still staring at my feet. "I tripped over, sir. But I am alright. Can you please come help Damon?" I beg again even though he already told me he's coming.

He lifts my chin up and smiles as I try to hide away my tears, but it seems as if he doesn't mind them and he lifts me up in his arms and asks of the servants to prepare his horses. I shamefully look away when he ruffles my hair and rubs my back. He was a good person, that much I knew.

Soon we're ready and we climb up in his cart and start slowly moving to our mansion.

"Mister Gilbert" I say confused, staring down at my hands, wondering how to say what I want to say "Can you please not tell father that you came, he would be…worried" I say instead of angry and the doctor furrows his eyebrows.

"Isn't he home now?" he asks confused and I shake my head

"He and momma went to Richmond" I explain and await nervously for his answer, but he only hums and scratches the back of his head, obviously thinking about something "Sir?" I ask, trying to bring his attention back to me. He smiles and I try relaxing, but I feel like I'm trembling.

"Let's see how your brother is first" he says instead and I squeeze my eyes for a moment, wishing he would just agree to this.

I caught him staring at the window and I look out too, thinking how when Damon gets better, we'll play outside and maybe, just maybe, he'll let me ride Mushroom.

 **Damon's POV**

By the time Stefan comes back with Gilbert, I'm almost asleep again, but when I hear my brother's worried steps up rushing up the stairs to our room, I quickly open my eyes only to see him running in looking terribly, with torn out trousers, bloody knees and a very dirty face and clothes.

"Stefan, what the-" I was about to curse when Gilbert followed behind and I tried moving up the pillows under Constance's stern look. "Doctor Gilbert" I say and greet him "I'm fine, there was no way for you to come, I'm sorry that-"

"He's lying, he's burning up" Constance interrupts me as she looks at Gilbert and pulls the chair she was sitting on until now away so he can come near me.

"Let's see what's going on here, shall we?" Gilbert says calmly and sits on the bed next to me. Stefan slowly approaches us from behind and wonders how to stand so he can peak on everything that's going on. He loved watching the doctor and whenever he came, he would ask him to show him how to use his instruments or how to do this or that-it was very funny and I usually enjoyed watching them, unless it was involving me, like right now. "Want to come closer, Stefan?" Gilbert asks and my brother nods "Get up here"

"No, no, you're dirty, Stefan, you need a bath!" Constance argues and Stefan immediately goes sad, his eyes fill with tears and I almost forget about the pain I'm feeling as Gilbert takes off the bandage she made. The look on his face makes her feel bad so she adds "Okay, why don't you come here, right?" she moves away from us and Stefan comes next to the doctor, peaking up behind his big arms, which made me laugh and took my mind off the pain.

Gilbert asked where I got the burns from and Constance lied that Stefan and I played near the fireplace yesterday and I accidentally burned myself. He obviously didn't believe her, because my wounds had the perfect round shape. I think he managed to figure it out and that's why he grew a bit silent and even angrier as he continued doing his work.

"Stefan put some ointment on the wounds so that helped for a while" I said, praising my little brother and Gilbert smiled at him

"That's good, you just need a stronger medicine" he says and I swallow hard as he takes care of the burns and wraps my hand in a tight bandage.

Stefan observes carefully and Gilbert even asks him to come help here and there which makes my brother very happy. He was so funny with his face black from the mud and his knees probably stinging as well as his bruised butt which I haven't forgotten about even if he was playing it cool. Then the doctor gives me some medicine and says it will take down the temperature in a few hours. He said I have to rest and try not to use my hand-it would hurt a lot for a few days, but then it will get better.

"Can you check on him?" I asked when he was done and nodded at Stefan and he started shaking his head

"But, Damy, I am fine" he protested and Gilbert's smile came back when he heard Stefan's nickname for me.

"Come here, Stefan" Gilbert said and grabbed my brother up, putting him on the other side of the bed and helping him undress.

Stefan was still a child, so of course when Gilbert tried to hear out his lungs and heart with this tube of his, he giggled and started squirming because he was ticklish. I smiled as the doctor tickled him for a bit and Stefan's childish laughed filled the room. Then when he pulled up his trousers and started cleaning the blood away from his knees, he accidentally saw the bruises on his butt and I swallowed hard. We exchanged looks for a brief moment and it felt like he was saying that he knows exactly what's going on here, but won't say anything, which is why I gave him a light nod.

When Stefan is taken care of and Gilbert leaves, Constance starts convincing my little brother that it's time for a bath. He is very reluctant to let me go, but with much persuasion from my side, he follows Constance downstairs and I take the time to rest, not that I haven't been lying all day long.

I almost laugh when I hear Stefan's grunts from downstairs and his begging to be left alone, probably because she was rubbing the dirt away and he hated it. When he finally came back upstairs, he was dressed in clean clothes, but was very grumpy and even sad and didn't want to talk. His face made me laugh and I mocked him for a while before Constance came upstairs with some food, claiming that it's way past noon and we haven't gotten anything to eat.

"Can I have some coffee, Constance?" I ask as she puts the tray in our legs. Stefan refused to let me go and I wasn't allowed to leave the bed so the only way she could make him eat something was if she brought the food to him.

"No" she argues as she hands Stefan and me a spoon.

"But mom lets me have some!" I argue, I was really tired and I didn't want to sleep afraid I'll get nightmares

"No coffee, only tea!" Constance grunts in our direction "Stefan, eat!" she orders and he shakes his head

"I'm not hungry" he announces and it's obvious that he's still angry about the bath thing, he's being stubborn and he's damn good at it.

"Stefan, eat!" we both raise our voices in his direction and he suddenly goes to silent. I remember hearing father yell at him last night as well and I realized that this is why he got so sad. He remembered it

"Come on, brother, don't be a pain in the ass" I scold him gently and ruffle his hair "Just a few spoons for me, alright? You'll make me feel better! Plus it's delicious, I can tell" I say as I shove another spoon in my mouth. It was honestly delicious and I loved the way Constance cooked for us.

Stefan finally agrees and takes the spoon back in his hand, deciding that he can't disappoint me. He barely eats half of it with some bread before he gives up and Constance leaves the room.

He sadly lies down on the pillow and I wonder what's wrong with him. He never ate much and mother scolded him a lot for it, because she was afraid he'll get sick. When I saw his bruised butt last night I realized how right she was-he was a skinny kid. I had to trip him into eating more.

"You know, Stef" I begin gently "You don't have to stay here with me. You can go out, have some fun" I suggest but he shakes his head

"With who? I only like playing with you. And there was nothing to do anyway." of course there is, he just doesn't want to leave me alone and I hate myself for it "I just want to lay down."

"Do you feel alright?" I ask worried that he might've gotten sick

"Yes, I'm okay, Damy" he responds silently and I get sad when I hear him being so desperate. I lie down on the pillows and pull the blanket up. We remain like this, in silence for a while and I hate that he is so damn sad, so I decide to take things into my own hands and pull the blanket away, deciding to stand up even if that proves to be a bit difficult.

"Damy, what's wrong?" he asks confused as he turns to me and sees me trying to get my shirt on

"Get up, Stefan, you're going to ride Mushroom!" I say and he sits up confused "I'm not going to spent the day lying around watching you like this. Come on, hop up!" I order and without asking anymore questions he jumps off bed.

"But, Damy, you gotta stay here!" he says worried as he puts his shoes on and I brush his comment away with a wave

"You know me" I say carelessly "I never listen to anyone, now come on! Don't make me regret this! It's your one and only chance, brother. Take it or leave it!"

"I'm coming, Damy!" he says enthusiastically while I'm already walking down the stairs, careful so that Constance won't hear us. I didn't want her to see me off bed, she could be a very dangerous woman when you disobeyed her.

I take Stefan through one of the backdoors and lead us slowly to the barns.

He is impatient and he runs before me, rushing to get inside, not willing to wait one bit for me, because he is that happy. And that's what I wanted for him, for us-I wish there could be another world where what happened last night could never be possible, but there isn't. I was older and I realized that, which made me hurt more.

But Stefan. Stefan was still a kid and he had to believe that there's something else out there for him, something different, painless, somewhere he can be happy.

"Hurry up, Damon!" he peaks up from the barn, furrowing his little eyebrows, because I'm taking way much more time than he wanted me to. I slowly put one feet in front of the other-I'm still in pain and I'm devastated, but for him I'll never stop trying.

I will myself to smile and stop just a few feet from the door.

"Patience, troublemaker" I say "I'm coming."

And for him, I always will.


End file.
